SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Freshman guard Ryan Mickiewicz (East Longmeadow, Mass.) scored 13 of his career high 18 points in the second half as the Western New England men's basketball team captured its first win of the season with a 63-54 victory over Wentworth Wednesday night at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.
The Golden Bears, who have dropped six games by four or less points this season, are now 1-13 and 1-3 in The Commonwealth Coast Conference. The Leopards, whose five-game win streak came to an end, also suffered their first conference loss in four outings to drop to 8-7. Wentworth entered the game as the conference co-leader with Colby-Sawyer.
Senior guard Chris Devine (Wilbraham, Mass.) added 10 points while senior center Conor Lomas (Wilbraham, Mass.) had 14 rebounds for the second straight game that matched his career best.
Wentworth led 30-29 at the break and 39-33 following a basket by junior forward Matt Harte (Troy, N.Y.) three minutes into the second half.
Mickiewicz knocked down a three-pointer and senior guard Andre Duncan (Bronx, N.Y.) came up with a steal and dunk, and then a free throw that gave WNEC a 39-36 lead with 15:18 remaining.
The Leopards went ahead for the final time at 40-39 when sophomore guard Corey Therriault (Auburn, Maine) made a basket with 12:40 left.
Western New England used an 11-0 run capped by another Mickiewicz three-pointer for a 50-40 advantage with a little less than eight minutes remaining.
Mickiewicz drained a NBA three to give Western New England its biggest lead at 56-44 at the 3:37 mark. He was 6-for-11 from the floor, perfect on all four three-pointers, and had a team-high four assists in the best game of his young career.
Senior forward Sam Herrick (Duxbury, Mass.) finished with a double-double after collecting a game-high 22 points (9-for-15 from the field) with 10 rebounds. Therriault contributed 15 points, four rebounds, and four assists.
Western New England shot 43.8% from the floor to offset a 53.3% shooting performance from the foul line (16-for-3).
Wentworth made only 34.4% of its field-goal attempts, but was 75% from the charity line (9-for-12). The Leopards held a slim 40-37 edge off the boards as freshman forward Derek Mayo (Casco, Maine) grabbed six boards.
(Courtesy of Western New England Sports Information)
